


Opposites Attract

by BritHistorian



Category: Dreamcatcher (Korea Band)
Genre: Blind Date, F/F, Zoo, literary agent, zookeeper
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-09
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:20:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22179205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BritHistorian/pseuds/BritHistorian
Summary: Dami is a zookeeper. Handong is a literary agent. They're both friends with Siyeon. When Siyeon sets them up on a blind date, they discover that what they want isn't what they need.
Relationships: Han Dong | Handong/Lee Yoobin | Dami
Kudos: 42





	Opposites Attract

DAMI

I stopped outside the restaurant to check my phone. I couldn't believe I'd let Siyeon talk me into this. I mean, yes, I'd been single longer than I wanted, but had I really sunk so low that I was going on blind dates from Siyeon? I mean, seriously - Siyeon? If Siyeon was so good at romance, why couldn't she find anything for herself. "I can't believe," I said to myself, "I'm about to go on a blind date set up by a woman who's sugar-mommying a college girl." Not that there's anything wrong with that, I guess, if that's your thing. I don't want anything that complicated, though. I just want an ordinary girlfriend. Someone who'll talk my ear off when I get home from a day at the zoo. Someone who doesn't mind that zookeepers smell like animal until after we've gotten a shower. Someone I can learn from. Am I really going to get that from someone Siyeon sets me up with? There's only one way to find out: I squared my shoulders and stepped into the restaurant.

The hostess greeted me as soon as I stepped in the door. I gave her the reservation number that Siyeon had emailed me. "Oh, you're the blind date!" she said with a smile. "She's already here - I'll take you to her." She led me through the door into the dining room and indicated a table in the corner, where a woman was sitting facing the wall. Seriously? Facing the wall? Who gets to a restaurant first and chooses the seat facing the wall? What kind of wingnut had Siyeon fixed me up with?

As I thanked the hostess and started to make my way across the dining room, she crossed her fingers and said "I'm hoping for you - I think you two would be so cute together!" Oh great. So at least my humiliation is going to provide entertainment for the restaurant staff.

I stopped, took a deep breath, and tried to refocus my state of mind. Siyeon's a romance author - she's got to know a thing or two about love and dating. This couldn't possibly be as bad as I was fearing. I walked the rest of the way across the dining room and stopped next to the table where my blind date was sitting. "Hi!" I said with a smile. "You must be Siyeon's friend. I'm Siyeon's . . . other friend." Oh, smooth. She'll definitely be all over me with an opening line like that.

I looked at her as she stood up to greet me. She was definitely pretty - I had to hand it to Siyeon for that. She was a little taller than me, and wore her hair in a bob with bangs that framed her face beautifully. She was wearing a white blouse trimmed with gold braid and a white miniskirt - I suddenly felt underdressed in my blue sailor dress. I realized I was getting lost looking at her legs and instantly snapped my attention back to her face. Her mouth looked like it was just begging to be kissed. Her nose was long and straight. And her eyes. . . looking into her eyes felt like I was letting her look inside of me. I had definitely been single too long, if this was how I was going to react to the first pretty woman Siyeon set me up with.

* * *

HANDONG

I interlaced my fingers and held my hands in my lap, trying to keep from fidgeting. I looked at the paintings on the walls - I sat facing the wall so that I wouldn't go nuts wondering if each woman entering the room was my date. Why had I even agreed to this? I'm Siyeon's agent, not her friend - I should be maintaining a professional distance, not letting her set me up on blind dates with her friends. I sighed. I knew why I had agreed to this - because as much as my professional life was a success, my personal life was a shambles. I could match a book with the right publisher without a second thought, but ask me to find myself a girlfriend, all I turn up are flakes and bitches. I mean, really, the villainess in Siyeon's latest book is based on my last ex-girlfriend. So I supposed I could do worse than to trust Siyeon. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, held it for a count of ten, then released it. I practically jumped out of my skin when I heard a voice to my right has "Hi! You must be Siyeon's friend. I'm Siyeon's. . . other friend."

I stood up to greet her. What I could see of her body through the dress she was wearing spoke of someone who exercised a lot - oh God, had Siyeon set me up with a gym rat? Surely she knew better than that! Then again, maybe not - as I stood up, I noticed that she was shorter than me. Siyeon knows I like taller women! Doesn't she? All the things she could possibly change to make this woman different from my ex, and she picked height?

I could feel her eyes on me as we faced each other. She wore her hair in a floppy bob. Her eyes were heavy-lidded, sleepy - no, that wasn't the word. What would be the word Siyeon would use? Sultry! That's it. I began to feel that maybe there was something sparking between us. I smiled slightly. "Pleased to meet you, Siyeon's other friend. I'm Handong. I'm actually Siyeon's agent. I guess she considers me a friend too, but. . ." I ran out of words. I gestured for her to sit down, then sat back down opposite her. After an uncomfortably long silence, I asked, "So. . . do you have a name, or am I just supposed to call you 'Siyeon's other friend' all night?"

She laughed. Not the tinkling of little bells laugh that Siyeon tends to write all of her heroines having if I don't stop her, but something warmer, richer. "I'm Dami,." she said. "I've known Siyeon since high school."

Things fell quiet again after that, which was only interrupted by the waiter coming to take our orders. 

* * *

DAMI

After the waiter left with our orders, we fell back into silence. Oh, this was horrible! I need someone who talks more than me, and instead Siyeon sets me up with someone shyer than me. How could there possibly be someone shyer than me? 

"So," Handong said, obviously struggling to bring out the words, "I've already told you that I'm Siyeon's agent. What do you do when you're not out on awkward blind dates set up by Siyeon?"

I laughed - at least she was recognizing that this was awkward. "I'm a zookeeper."

Handong brought her hands to her mouth in delight. "A zookeeper? Are you the inspiration for the heroine of The Zookeeper's Bride?"

Just then the waiter brought our drinks. I took a sip of my drink and nodded. "Guilty as charged."

Her eyes grew wide. "And you really go in the cages with the lions and tigers?"

I nodded. "But the bears are my favorites. That's where I was today. One of the bears was having cubs."

"Cubs?" She squealed. "I want to see them!" 

"They won't go on display for a few months yet." Seeing the look of disappointment that was coming over her face, I made an impulsive decision, one I still don't understand. "But after dinner, if you want, I can take you in to see them."

She was practically bounding in her chair, she was so giddy with excitement. "Really? You can do that?"

I took another sip of my drink. "I'm not supposed to, but everyone does it from time to time."

"Oh." She looked downcast. "I dont want you to get in trouble because of me." 

I shook my head. "There won't be any trouble. What do you say? After dinner, how about I take you for an after-hours tour of the zoo?"

She looked like a kid who'd just been told there was going to be an extra Christmas this year. "Really? You can do that? We can do that?"'

I nodded. "Sure. The only person who'd even care is my boss, and he won't be around after hours."

* * *

HANDONG

Soon after that, the waiter brought our dinner. Ordinarily I would have been excited by this - it's next to impossible to get a table at this restaurant; I don't know how Siyeon pulled it off. But all I could think about was going to the zoo with Dami. I peppered her with questions about the zoo, and she never seemed to tire of answering them. Except for an interest in cute baby animals, I'd never really been interested in the zoo, but Dami made it sound like the most fascinating place in the world.

"You should write a book," I said. "People would love to read the stories that you're telling me."

She blushed, then shook her head. "Maybe someday, if I get a promotion, but no one wants to read the adventures of an assistant zookeeper."

"Don't sell yourself short," I said between bites of beef and rice. "You've got a gift for storytelling. I would know - I've met people who've had the most fascinating adventures, but who's telling of them is about as exciting as a laundry list."

She laughed and refilled our glasses. "No," she said, "I'm no Siyeon."

"No no no," I responded. "Siyeon's talent is a different sort altogether. She's got the gift of creating stories out of nothing. You've got stories to tell of things that actually happened to you, and you're able to tell them in an interesting way."

She smiled at me. "Well, if I ever do write a book, I'll be sure to show it to you first. Well, maybe second - can you imagine the hissy fit Siyeon would throw if I didn't let her read it first?"

Having seen the fits Siyeon could have when she was stuck with a cover artist she didn't like, I could certainly imagine this. "Yeah, you'd better let Siyeon read it first, just to keep the peace."

"So. . ." She drew out the word as if trying to think of how to say what she wanted to say. "Besides trying to keep Siyeon calm, what else goes into being a literary agent? Seems like it'd be a pretty glamorous job."

I laughed. "I'm afraid I have to disappoint you, then. Most of it involves me sitting around my apartment in my jammies, sending emails and making phone calls." I blushed. Why had I brought up my jammies? And what had I called them "jammies"? What am I, in middle school?

Fortunately, she didn't seem to find anything amiss. "But it can't all be shoveling elephant poop," she said, an impish twinkle in her eye. "There have to be some parts that make it worthwhile too."

I took a sip of my drink. "I do enjoy it when I'm able to get a good deal for one of my writers, and from time to time I get to publishing conventions and meet famous writers. Who's your favorite?"

She frowned slightly. "I don't really have time to read much, but when I do, I'm a big fan of Murakami Haruki. I'm a few books behind, though - I'm still reading 1Q84. It's a good thing for me he's not a faster writer."

I shook my head. "I've never had a chance to meet him - he doesn't travel much, and when he does, his publisher controls access to him pretty tightly."

'I wouldn't even know what to say if I met him," she said, suddenly looking small and vulnerable. Why was I finding that so attractive? I'm used to being the one being protected, not the protector. I like it that way! But sometime about Dami made me want to protect her. Except from wild animals - she'll have to protect me from those.

"Most authors are just so happy to be out among people that they'll keep talking as long as you keep a bar tab open. Writing can be a lonely life. That's why so many of them write in coffee shops - it provides the illusion of human contact, even if they're not actually interacting with anyone."

She nodded. "That makes sense. Zookeeping can be like that sometimes. Sometimes we have to work together to move an animal, but for routine work it's just you and the animals. One of my co-workers always says 'It's not a problem when you talk to the animals. It's a problem when you think they're talking back." We both had a good laugh at this.

* * *

DAMI

I noticed that Handong appeared to be about done with her dinner - she was playing with the last few bites on her plate rather than actually eating them. She kind of reminded me of a lemur. Better not say that out loud, though. She probably wouldn't find it flattering.

"You about ready to go see the bear cubs?" I asked. She said that she was, so we paid the bill and left the restaurant. One the way out, we discussed how we would get to the zoo - my car was at home, and she doesn't drive. I pulled up the transit schedule app and saw that it would be quicker to take the train to the zoo than to take the train to my house and then drive to the zoo.

As luck would have it, we timed it perfectly. We got to the train stop just as the train arrived. We found a couple of seats and I looked around the half-empty car. It looked like we were catching the train at the perfect moment: Too late for rambunctious high schoolers, too early for drunken businessmen.

We lapsed back into awkward silence as the train got underway. "I love taking the train," she eventually said. "I always think about how far the tracks go and how I could just keep riding and go practically anywhere."

"I'd never thought of it that way," I said. "I always kind of resented taking the train. I always feel more in control when I'm driving, and I like that."

"But that loss of control is one of the great things about the train," she said. "In a car, you always have to stay focused on the road. You can't read, you can't take a nap. You always have to be attentive to your car. With the train, you can take your mind off of it, and you'll still get where you're going." She stopped and looked out the window wistfully.

"I'd never thought of it like that," I said. "It does sound kind of nice when you put it that way."

"And if you're taking a train with someone," she went on, "you can give that person all your attention. You don't have to talk to them in dribs and drabs in between trying to keep other cars from running into you."

I laughed. "You make riding in a car sound positively horrifying."

She joined in my laughter. "Well, I don't drive, so I can't say for sure, but all the times I've been a passenger in a car, it's been pretty horrifying."

I had a moment of recognition. "You've been riding with Siyeon, haven't you?"

She nodded. "She insists on driving, even though I always tell her we can take the train or even hire a car and the agency will pay for it."

I laughed. "Siyeon is a horrible driver!"

She joined in my laughter. "I had thought so," she said, "but I hadn't wanted to say anything."

"If you're ever in a car with me, I promise I'll do better than Siyeon."

She started laughing harder. "That's not a very high standard!" she said between giggles. Oh my God. I'm going out with a woman who giggles? And I think I'm starting to like her? What have you done to me, Siyeon?

We were both laughing so hard we almost missed our stop. Fortunately, I managed to get us off the train just in time.

* * *

HANDONG

We got off the train at the zoo - just barely: It was about to start moving again when we got off. The parking lot was empty and dark.

"This way," Dami said, leading me to a small sidewalk off to the side of the main entrance. She pulled a ring of keys around her purse and unlocked the door. We went inside and she locked the door behind us. She took my hand - "so we don't get separated," she said - and led me past the monkey house, past the big cats, past the elephants, water buffalos, and giraffes, until we came to the bear building. She opened a gate with a sign on it reading "No Admittance - Staff Only" and led me around to the back of the building. She pulled out the big ring of keys again and unlocked a door. 

"This is the side of the zoo that most people don't get to see," she said. We were in a storage room with bins full of vegetables, cans of fruit, and a sink and counter for preparing the bears' meals. There was a cabinet to one side with a red cross on it up against one wall, and a desk with a large ledger on it against the other wall. 

"The book contains everything there is to know about our bears, from the day they were born up to today," Dami said, running her fingers down the page the book was open to.

"Everything?" I asked incredulously.

"Everything." Dami nodded emphatically. "Every change of diet. Every change of behavior. Every illness. Length and weight at each checkup. Anything else you might want to know. Now come on - let's go see those cubs.

She led me through a doorway at the end of the room. In front of us was a large window, though which I could see the bears. One of them looked up at us, and I hung back in the doorway.

"There's nothing to be afraid of," Dami said. "The glass is shatterproof." She grabbed my hand and pulled me forward until I was standing beside her. Her fingers were warm and strong. She pointed to the bear closest to the window. "This big fellow is Keun, and over there's Gwihan, the mama bear."

I laughed. "You named your bears 'Big' and 'Precious'?" The names were simultaneously fitting and hilarious.

She nodded. "That was my boss's predecessor's doing. The policy on naming the animals has changed somewhat since then. See the two little pink cubs curled up against Ghiwan's belly?"

I looked closely. I could just barely make out two small, hairless bears. One of them yawned and rubbed his nose, then rolled over any went back to sleep. "What's happened to their fur?" I asked.

"They're born without any fur," Dami said. "It'll grow in soon enough." She looked at me, amusement playing over her face. "You were expecting them to look like teddy bears, weren't you?"

I laughed. "I was. It's just. . . when you see baby bears on TV, they look like that."

She nodded. "That's a few months on. They grow quickly, and in six months you won't even recognize these little pipsqueaks."

"What are their names?" I asked, bracing myself for more horrible names.

Dami smiled, evidently enjoying my uncertainly. "Those are Kristoff and Elsa," she said proudly.

I laughed again. "You named them after the characters from Frozen?"

She nodded. "If they had been two girls, they would have been Elsa and Anna, and two boys would have been Kristoff and Olaf."

"Well, I think they're wonderful names," I said, "and I can't wait to come back and see them when they're looking a little more bear-like."

Just then I heard a loud male voice coming from behind me. Dami's eyes got huge

* * *

DAMI

"There's really not much to see yet," Sung-Ho was saying to someone. "They're tiny and hairless as yet, and the mother will keep them cuddled close to her."

Handong looked at me, her eyes asking what to do. Thinking quickly, I grabbed her hand and led her further into the building and around the corner. There was an old desk there that I sometimes used to do my paperwork. I pulled out the chair and gestured for her to climb under the desk. Thankfully, she did so with no hesitation. I climbed in after her and then pulled the chair in behind me as best I could. We huddled together under the desk, listening to Sung-Ho carry on about the bears. 

Handong looked over at me and mouthed "Your boss?" I nodded. 

"I'm sorry I got you into this," I whispered.

She shook her head. "Don't be - this is the most exciting thing that's ever happened to me."

We fell quiet again, listening to Sung-Ho talking. I knew from experience that once he got started talking, he was quite capable of keeping it up for hours. He wasn't a bad person, he was just my boss, so there was going to be some element of antipathy there. Handong laid her head on my shoulder. I could smell her shampoo - something herbal with eucalyptus in it. The koalas would probably love it.

We stayed like that for what seemed like forever, but was actually just a matter of a few minutes. I could feel the warmth of Hangdong's body wherever she was pressed against me. After a while she began to squirm, evidently trying to get into a more comfortable position. I tried to scoot toward the front of the desk to give her more room, but she put her hand on my waist and pulled me toward her. I looked over to find her staring up at my, an impish smile playing across her features.

"Kiss me?" she mouthed. When I didn't respond, she repeated her request twice more. Finally, I overcame my hesitation and uncertainly and leaned down, pressing my lips against hers.

Her lips were soft. Her mouth was warm. Our heads were held in an awkward angle due to the tight space we were crammed into, but somehow neither of us seemed to mind. Experimentally, feeling as awkward as I had the first time I had kissed a girl, I leaned toward her and advanced my tongue toward her mouth. Her earlier shyness seemingly forgotten, she welcomed my tongue into her mouth, as if this was what she had planned all along - for our evening to end up with us making out under a desk at the zoo while my boss droned on about bears in the next room. 

When we finally had to stop to breathe, we noticed the silence from the other room. Suddenly the silence was broken by Sung-Ho calling out "Dami!" Handong and I looked at each other, each afraid to even breathe. After a suitably dramatic pause, Sung-Ho carried on. "I know you brought your date here tonight to see the bear cubs. I'm going to make allowances, considering it's such a special occasion, but don't make a habit of it. See you tomorrow!" This last was followed by the sound of the door to the building closing. Handong and I kept staring at each other, each totally surprised by this turn of events.

Finally I was the one to break the silence. "Do you want to go see the bears again?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I've seen them," she said quietly.

I nodded silently. "Sorry about getting you into this," I said quietly. "I'm sure this wasn't how you had envisioned your evening going. There'll be another train soon and we can-"

Whatever I had been about to say next was silenced by her kissing me again. When she finally let go and pulled away from me, she looked up at me with a smile. "This has been a wonderful evening," she said quietly, "and I hope you're not trying to end it now, just when things are really starting to get good."

I returned her smile and leaned in for another kiss.


End file.
